Drowning
by Cuteblndegoddess
Summary: One shot. Seventh Year. Hermione is left at Hogwarts to look after Ginny. Blaise is there to help her get over the loneliness. Fanon Blaise. Rated M


_**I don't own Harry Potter and I'm not making any money off of these stories. **_

_**This is a Blaise/Hermione paring. If you don't like that ship then you probably won't like this story. Happy reading and don't forget to review!**_

Drowning

_The smell of damp earth surrounded Hermione Granger as she walked in the rain down to the black lake. She was alone, as was usually the case anymore. Hogwarts reopened that year to anyone who wanted to attend. Unfortunately not many did. Hogwarts now had less than 50 students. She was made head girl, and she took the responsibility very seriously. Harry and Ron had not returned of course. They were off searching for Horcruxes. Hermione had fully intended to join them but Ron begged her to stay here and keep an eye on Ginny. And grudgingly she had agreed. But that was six months ago, and on this rainy March morning thoughts of Harry and Ron lingered on her mind. She sought solace underneath a large oak tree near the lake shore. Her bag was soaking wet, but she had charmed her books to stay bone dry. Sighing heavily she sat on the wet grass and pulled out her Astronomy papers. Her eyes focused on the complicated charts and graphs and before long she could no longer make out the different stars names. Rubbing her eyes she rolled up her parchment to take a break. The rain had lightened to a drizzle and the subtle smell of springtime floated around her. _

_Hermione sighed heavily. Nothing it seemed would help her ease this feeling of loneliness. She had not received an owl from anyone since around Christmas. And Ginny was no fun to be around anymore. She was so worried about Harry ever second of every day that her grades had slipped and she had to be rushed to Madam Pomfrey at least once a month. Lavender and Pavarti were no longer at Hogwarts. Seamus returned and so did Neville. Dean Thomas returned briefly but was pulled out of school when they found his mother dead in their home, the dark mark set above it. A handful of Hufflepuffs remained, and more Ravenclaws than any other house. Only two Slytherins remained. Blaise Zabini a seventh year and Graham Pritchard a fourth year. After an hour or so of complete silence and solitude she decided to return to the castle, have a long hot bath and stay in her pajamas the rest of the day. She stood to leave when she heard someone coming towards her from the path to her right. Her wand was always at the ready so she pointed it in the direction of the sound._

"_You'll put someone's eye out Granger." a smooth voice said as he came into view. Hermione lowered her wand and glared at the last remaining Slytherin seventh year. Blaise Zabini._

"_What are you doing out here Zabini? Spying for your pal Malfoy? Lurking? Sending secret owls?"_

"_Sod off Granger. I was taking a walk to clear my head. Not that I have to explain myself to you." he told her. His voice silkily rolling off his tongue. _

"_I am head girl. So you do have to explain yourself to me." she replied defiantly, staring him directly in his deep blue eyes._

"_Whatever." he replied and headed back to the castle. _

"_Why did you need to clear your head?" she asked catching up with him on the path._

"_What?" he asked in disbelief. "Why do you care?"_

"_I don't." _

"_Then why ask?"_

"_Head girl duty I suppose. Oh…" she sighed. "I've missed dinner." Her stomach was grumbling loudly as they reached the large wooden doors of the castle. He opened the door for her and let her go first. She pretended not to notice, and he pretended not to care._

"_Well that just tops my day." Blaise said slamming the giant door behind him._

_Hermione ignored him and headed upstairs towards the Gryffindor common room. Now she was tired and hungry and lonely. She climbed hundreds of stairs, growing more and more tired as she did until she finally reached her destination. The warmth that used to be the Gryffindor common room was gone. No cheery fire welcomed her. No students playing wizard chess and gobstones at various comfy armchairs. No Harry and Ron pouring over homework and waiting for her to help them. Seamus was snoozing on the sofa and Ginny was looking blankly out the window at the rain._

_Hermione's heart felt very heavy as she climbed even more stairs to her dorm room. It was empty as well, no roommates to eavesdrop on this year. No one to fight for the bathroom with. She threw her bag and books on the floor next to the bed and stripped off her damp clothing tossing that to the floor as well. She picked out a pink tank top and white pajama shorts and put them on before opening her bedroom window. A cool spring breezed blew in making her stuffy bedroom smell like just after the rain. She sighed heavily and lay on the top of her covers, letting the wind blow over her body. Shortly after that, Hermione was asleep._

_Hours passed before Hermione woke up to a bright flash of lightning and a loud clap of thunder. Rain poured in her window soaking the floor. Hermione ran and shut the window before drying the floor with a charm. She rubbed her eyes and stretched like a cat. _

_Her stomach gave a loud growl._

"_Bother." she said to herself rubbing it absentmindedly. As quiet as possible she snuck down to the common room to see if any snacks were left in the small cupboard. Nothing. Obviously the boys left had eaten whatever was left. Now she was in a predicament. She could try to go back to sleep and hear her stomach growl all night long. Or she could sneak down to the kitchen and get some food so that she could try to sleep peacefully the rest of the night. In the end, she chose the latter. _

_Quietly she tiptoed down the staircase to the common room and exited through the portrait hole. The halls were deadly silent, with only an occasional ghost passing by. It seemed an eternity before she reached the portrait of fruit that led to the kitchens. She tickled the pear and the door swung open._

"_Miss? What can Lela get for you tonight?" the tiny girl house elf squeaked. Her large blue eyes looking at Hermione with such adoration that Hermione felt slightly ill at the thought._

"_I can get things for myself." Hermione tried to explain, but Lela would not hear of it. She sat Hermione down on a comfy chair and busied herself preparing a midnight snack. A few minutes later Lela came back with a tray laden with two turkey sandwiches, a pitcher of pumpkin juice, some potato chips and pickle slices and an overly large piece of chocolate cake._

"_Anything else I can get you?" the tiny elf asked._

"_No, thank you so much Lela. I will be sure to tell Headmistress McGonagall what a wonderful job you are doing." she said bending down and shaking the elf's hand lightly. Lela looked as if she would burst with pride._

"_Thank you so much Miss. Come back anytime." Lela said bowing Hermione out of the door._

_The tray was heavy and hard to carry. And Hermione jumped a bit every time the lightning or thunder flashed. She was sure her mind was playing tricks on her. Out of the corner of her eyes she was sure a shadow was following her. Her heartbeat quickened and her breathing became short and sporadic._

"_Get a grip." she said aloud to herself._

"_Out in the halls alone Granger?" she heard a deep voice say from behind her. She lost control of the tray and prepared to hear it crash to the floor. But it didn't. Blaise saved it from falling with a flick of his wand and a whispered incantation. It hovered inches from the floor, all of its contents still in tact. She reached down and grabbed it before setting it on a small side board table near them._

"_Ten points from Slytherin." she said furiously. She hated being scared. She covered her chest with her arms, realizing how scantily she was dressed._

"_No Potter and Weasley to protect you now." he said moving towards her. His dark hair shone in the lightning flashes. And she could just make out the olive skin of his face and deep blue of his eyes in the dim torch light._

"_I don't need them to save me anymore." she lied. One of her greatest fears was being attacked alone. And now it seemed that might just come true. "And another ten points for threatening me."_

"_Who cares about house points anymore?" he said moving closer. "There's only two Slytherin left in the entire school. So take all the points, I don't give a damn."_

_Hermione was surprised to hear him say that. She kept up the façade that things going on here at Hogwarts still mattered._

"_Well I am still head girl so return to your dormitory at once." _

"_No, I don't think I will. It looks like you saved me the trouble of raiding the kitchen for some food. I'll take that thank you." he said reaching for the tray. Hermione stood in front of it._

"_This is my dinner, go get your own and then go to your room and stay there the rest of the night." she ordered him. _

_He smiled._

"_Like I would ever listen to you." He made to reach for the tray again. Hermione pulled her wand out and pointed it at Blaise._

"_Now." she said, fire blazing in her eyes._

_He held up his hands in mock defeat and backed away._

"_You have enough food there for two people." he said. "Why not share with me so I don't have to break any more rules and go back to the kitchen?"_

"_Not in a million years Zabini." she said grabbing a pickle slice and eating it with relish. She picked up the tray and started walking again. Blaise caught up with her._

"_Come on Granger…I thought you were all for 'house unity'."_

"_Not with you."_

"_We could go to the library. You're head girl. Madame Pince wouldn't think twice if you were in there this late."_

"_What is your agenda Zabini? We are not friends, we are not acquaintances."_

"_I missed dinner too. I'm hungry." he said darting in front of her blocking her way to the stairs._

"_Too bad." Hermione said attempting to get around him. But he blocked the whole doorway._

"_Zabini…if I agree to share this with you will you leave me the bloody hell alone?" she asked skeptically. He nodded. Hermione huffed and turned around heading to the deserted library. Blaise followed behind her, watching her walk. He smiled to himself looking at the way her rear looked in those tight, short pajama bottoms._

_Hermione opened the large doors of the library and peered in. Empty, as expected. She lit a few of the candles along the way before taking a seat at a long table near the windows. _

"_I hope this suits your needs." she said mockingly._

"_Well…" he said, putting his hand to his chin and looking at the dingy oak table. "I supposed it will have to do." And then he did something unexpected. He smiled._

_Hermione conjured two plates and glasses and doled the food out. She didn't look at Blaise as she did so. While she was occupied he lit a candle so that they could see better._

"_Well, eat up so we can get back to bed." she said before taking a sip of pumpkin juice._

"_Back to bed with you? Hmmm…" he said looking at her wickedly._

"_Get over it." she said irritably. "I'm tired and need to get some sleep."_

"_So…" he said looking at her intensely. "Why were you alone outside earlier?"_

"_Thinking…wait, its none of your business." she said defensively remembering his attitude earlier._

"_School has really sucked this year." he said randomly. "No friends, no Quidditch, no trips to Hogsmeade."_

"_Yeah." she said agreeing. "Hey…why did you come back? Didn't you want to follow in Malfoy's footsteps?"_

_Blaise huffed._

"_Believe it or not, my mum is not a death eater. She may manipulate men into leaving her their fortunes, but she isn't the slight bit interested in following that psycho. Now if he had a large pile of gold to leave her…"_

_Hermione laughed in spite of herself._

"_Anyway, Draco and I aren't that close. We were housemates, and sometimes talked. But that's it. He was obsessed with learning dark arts and being a mini-Lucius. I was not interested in that."_

"_Oh, I just assumed." she said eating some chips and taking a drink of juice._

"_Everyone does. Why did you come back?" he asked her._

"_Ron asked me to keep an eye on his little sister Ginny."_

"_Why didn't they come back?" _

"_That is personal. Sufficed to say that Harry is busy doing a task Dumbledore set before he died." she said looking out the window at the storm that was finally letting up._

"_Oh, so they thought you weren't up to the task? And gave you the job of babysitting?" he said chuckling a bit._

"_No!" she said a bit angry. "I promised to keep Ginny safe. Harry loves her; she is Ron's sister and my friend. That's it." He knew how to get under her skin._

"_Fine, whatever. Don't get your knickers in a bunch." he replied pouring another glass of pumpkin juice._

_Hermione grumbled to herself and concentrated on eating. Gloomy silence filled the large library until another flash of lightning lit up the millions of books and a boom of thunder shook the room._

"_Bloody hell, I hate storms." he said looking up through the high windows at the sky outside. It was black and grey with no stars visible._

_Hermione ignored his comment. _

_Minutes seemed like hours in the heavy silence. Unable to keep quiet any longer Hermione asked him a question._

"_So why did you come back this year?" _

_He raised his head and looked into her eyes. For a moment he looked like a very small boy inside a man's body._

"_My mum made me promise to finish school. I told her how miserable it would be. And I was right. Slytherin house only has one other student. I'm bored to tears when I have to be there."_

"_Yeah, me too…" she said trailing off thinking of times past when her friends were there and how much she loved Hogwarts they way it was._

"_At least there are a few people in your house though." he said taking the last bite of his sandwich._

"_Believe it or not they are not loads of fun to be around right now. Not knowing what's going on with Ron and Harry has made it very hard on everyone."_

_He nodded, keeping his eyes locked on her. She shifted hers down and looked at the table, for she had a vision of drowning in the deep pools of blue staring at her._

_Hermione finished eating and then sent her tray back to the kitchens with a flick of her wand. She didn't know what to say next to him. She supposed she should be polite and say goodbye or maybe thank him for keeping her company._

'_That would sound pathetic.' she thought to herself. _

"_Well…" she started._

"_Yeah." was Blaise's reply._

_She stared uncomfortably at the floor, her arms folded across her chest._

"_I should be getting back." she said._

"_May I walk you to your room?" he asked._

_Hermione was taken aback by his request. She cocked her head slightly at him._

"_Oh well I suppose that would be alright. Safety in numbers." she said, her voice cracking. They headed for the library doors and he opened them allowing her to pass again. This time she thanked him. _

_They walked softly down the empty hallways. No lanterns were lit and a cold draft blew. Hermione shivered. _

"_Here." Blaise said offering her his soft navy blue robe. He wrapped it around her shoulders and she hugged it close to her body. His scent lingered on the fabric and she inhaled it deeply. It was spicy, but not overpowering. _

"_Thank you." she said softly. Her mind was contemplating every possible reason he was acting this way, and what ulterior motives he may have in the back of his mind. When they finally reached the portrait of the fat lady she stopped and turned to face him. She was somewhat surprised at the cut of his shoulders and chest in the white tank he was wearing. Her stomach did a flip. She leaned against the portrait and he put his hands on the wall behind her, one on each side of her head._

"_Well, goodnight." she managed to say in a hoarse voice. She felt something in her throat and tried to swallow._

"_Thank you Granger." he said in his smooth voice. The corners of his mouth upturned in a smile._

"_Hermione." she corrected. _

"_Hermione." he repeated, his head leaning closer to hers. She was unable or unwilling to move or try to stop it. The softness of his lips grazed her own just slightly. He kissed her a bit harder running his tongue across his lower lip to wet it. More lightning flashed and thunder clapped but neither one noticed. Hermione reached up and ran her hands through his thick, dark hair; loving the silken feel on her skin. All the loneliness she had felt since the school year had began was fading away in her mind. And then she thought of Ron. She had loved him since they were 11. She pulled away from him and gasped for breath._

"_I'm sorry…I shouldn't have." she said sobbing. "Ron…I promised him…" Then thick tears fell from her eyes. He kept his eyes on hers and took hold of both of her hands._

"_Ron isn't here. He's left you all alone." he crooned. The sound of his voice was soothing and she took a deep breath to regain her composure._

"_But I promised him…" she started to say._

"_You are dating him then?" he asked her._

"_Well no."_

"_Then what promise did you make?""That I would wait for him." she replied seriously. _

"_Did he promise you the same?"_

_That thought had never crossed her mind. He hadn't really waited for her. He had been with Lavender already and who knows what he's doing right now._

"_Well did he?" Blaise pressed._

"_No." she said in a very small voice. He pressed his forehead against hers. _

"_Then come with me." he said taking her hand inside his own. _

_She resisted at first but soon he was pulling her along the deserted corridors towards the front entry hall. The giant door creaked when he pulled one of them open and they fled into the night. Rain poured over them making Hermione's hair cling to her neck and back. Blaise's dark hair looked painted on his face. They seemed to run forever. Finally Blaise stopped under a giant oak tree. The rain couldn't get to them there. He pressed her back into the tree and kissed her softly again. _

"_I've felt so alone until tonight." he admitted. "You were the first person I've really talked to all year."_

_Hermione lost herself in his eyes and nodded timidly. A strong breeze blew chilling her to the bone. Blaise wrapped his arms around her and warm sensation coursed through her body. He kissed her again, a little more forcefully. She responded openly and put her hands behind his neck. His smooth olive skin felt like velvet underneath her touch. Goosebumps erupted on his skin as her nimble fingers slid across it slowly. His strong hand cupped her face softly. Single strands of her hair blew in the breeze around her face. The bark of the tree scraped against the bare skin on her back. It was rough, and hurt, but it was wonderful and real to her. The most real and alive she had felt since returning to Hogwarts. Her right leg rubbed against the flannel fabric of his pajama bottoms. Suddenly he stopped kissing her and pressed his forehead against hers._

"_What's the matter? Hermione asked him breathlessly, wondering if she had done something wrong._

"_Nothing…" he murmured, still trying to catch his breath. Hermione furrowed her brow at his answer. She knew something was wrong. You don't just start snogging someone and then stop for no reason. Especially when you were enjoying it, or at least she thought he was. Feeling slighted she pulled from his embrace and walked to look at the lake through the heavy downpour of rain. She didn't know what to do. She felt silly and slightly embarrassed at letting him kiss her like that. Her face felt red and flushed. Blaise stared at her, deep blue eyes boring into the back of her head. _

"_I'd better get back." she managed to say. _

"_Don't…I didn't mean…" _

"_Yeah, me either." she replied, keeping the tears from giving her away yet again._

"_No, listen." he said taking her by the shoulders and forcing her to look into his eyes. "I didn't mean it like that. I was just trying to engrave this moment in my memory."_

_Hermione rolled her eyes._

"_No really. Please…I don't want you to go." he leaned down and kissed her again. "Stay."_

_Hermione nodded as she kissed him back letting her mind fall back into blissful nothingness. The damp smell of the rain filled her nostrils. He had backed her up against the tree again, this time his hands roamed up her thighs and into her pajama shorts. Soft fingertips grazed the edge of her knickers, feeling the soft pink skin surrounding them. His mouth captured a soft moan of surprise. She didn't try to stop him, although she knew she should. The months of loneliness had finally taken their final toll. Her hands caressed his shoulder blades and up to the nape of his neck. Thick course hair slid through her fingertips. She kissed him deeper, letting him slide her pajama bottoms off of her legs and onto the ground. The cool air flickered over her bare skin. She shivered but felt warmer than she had ever felt in her life. She raised her hands over her head and gripped a tree branch behind her as he lifted off her tank top and tossed it aside as well. She stood there, under a tree, naked and wanting him more than she could express. She fumbled trying to take off his white tank. She murmured an apology into his lips as he relieved himself of his pajama bottoms. His smooth skin felt like heaven against her own. She lifted her right leg and wrapped it around his, pulling him closer. She felt his erection against her stomach. Something about the smell of him turned her on. She reached down and felt it without looking. The skin was soft and velvety. Her hand ran up and down the shaft causing it to twitch involuntarily. Blaise's chest was pressed tightly against hers. Hermione could feel his heart rate increase when her hand stroked his erection. Suddenly he picked Hermione up and laid her on the soft, wet grass. She could smell the earth and rain and her senses became overwhelmed as he laid on her and continued to kiss her. Blaise's hands found their way to her breasts. Her rose colored nipples stood up as he fondled them. His lips moved lower until he found the small, hard peaks. Taking one into his mouth he suckled them softly, then a bit harder. Even going as far as to bite them. Her back arched and she dug her heels into the soft ground. _

"_You taste so good." he whispered. She opened her legs and he kissed his way down to the damp curls. His finger probed her there feeling the hot wetness of her. Hermione felt every sensation magnified by a thousands times. He looked up at her and read the message in her eyes. He kissed his way back up to her lips and lay in between her legs. His erection grazed her making Hermione feel both excited and nervous. He didn't wait for her to give him the final nod before plunging his manhood inside of her. She arched again, screaming out in pain. He did not relent or take her pain into consideration; on the contrary. Her screams made him pump harder and faster. After a few minutes she could no longer feel that intense pain. Instead she felt a low burning that was growing by the second. His once soft and gentle kisses her rough and raw. She threw her head back and took a deep breath in. Something was building inside her. Hermione needed a release. She licked her lips and grabbed Blaise's head, pulling him up to meet hers. What she was doing was so unlike her, so forbidden. It made everything even more real. She kissed him deeply, thrusting her tongue into his mouth. He knew it was his sign, his nod from her that she was ready. He kept his mouth on hers and pushed her legs up, bending her nearly in half. That was it. Something exploded inside of her. She could no longer see or hear or feel. _

'_I've died.' her head told her but then she felt him against her spot again. It was so deep and intense she didn't know if she could take that sensation again. Then it came again and swept over her. She screamed out. Blaise smirked and put the rest of his energy into making her cum again and again. She looked into those deep pools of blue and then she couldn't breathe. She felt like she was underwater. Like she was drowning. Colors swirled inside of her eye lids. Blue, aqua and green dominated the color spectrum. Peaceful images washed over her and she knew that she was in a better place. She accepted her fate and drifted off into oblivion._

_Then she was gasping for air and Blaise was lying on top of her, shuddering slightly as the cool air blew across his sweaty skin. He had brought her back to life. And she was grateful for it._

_**The End**_


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